Saturday, May 13, 2006

Halfway to a pair

Geronimo in the sun:

Mirando on the sheets just out of the dryer:


Knitting: I finished my first Jaywalker, and I've done a couple of inches on the second. The first one fits, once I've struggled to get it on. I'm not sure if sock knitting is for me. It's an awful long time to work and end up with...socks. I'll have to walk around in them once the pair is finished and see if I fall in love with them.

Writing: Almost 25,000 words--chapter 5 is done. Woo!

Reading: Same fluffy book.

Cooking: Yarnthrower, sure I'll entertain cooking questions! Roasting actually just refers to cooking in a dry heat, like an oven. I usually roast vegetables between 400 and 500 degrees, after tossing with a bit of olive oil.

Last night I made on-the-fly pasta with asparagus:

Capellini With Asparagus, Mushrooms, and Lemon

1 TBL olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into long strips
1/2 cup white wine
grated zest of one lemon
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 tsp cornstarch
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 pound asparagus, tough ends removed, and snapped in thirds
1 pound capellini, cooked according to package directions
Parmagiano-Reggiano cheese for garnish

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and mushrooms; cook until mushrooms begin to give up liquid. Add yellow pepper, asparagus, white wine, and lemon zest. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes. Combine cream and cornstarch and stir in. Add salt and pepper to taste. Simmer until sauce is slightly thickened. Toss well with capellini; serve topped with cheese. Serves 6.

5 comments:

YarnThrower said...

Thanks for the info about roasting. I consider myself only "adequate" in the kitchen. It doesn't come naturally to me, though I cook most nights of the week. I am always "all ears" to any suggestions, so I enjoy your blog having simple tips on it. In fact, I "roasted" some asparagus last night to include with our dinner, tossed in olive oil and with one of the Penzey's salad spices sprinkled on it, and I really liked it, and my three-year-old told me "Thank you, Mommy, for making this for dinner. I really like it." The pasta recipe you have in today's post sounds yummy, too! I'll probably try it next week... Good luck with your Jaywalkers!

Dipsy Doodle said...

Hi from Austria! Oh, I love your cat, what a beauty he is!
I'm looking forward to seeing pics of your Jaywalkers - I may as well be the only person on earth who hasn't done them yet though I absolutely adore the pattern, so perhaps seeing yours will give me the final kick to try my hands at them as well!
Thanks also so much for sharing the recipe, it sounds so absolutely tasty and I'll make sure to try it out soon!
Dipsy Doodle http://www.millharrow.com/weblog

Rain said...

Mirando looks so contented.

Keep going with the Jaywalkers, you'll get there eventually. A lot of people find them a bit tight to get on.

Marie said...

The kitties are looking beautiful and oh-so-cuddly as usual!
Too bad about the Jaywalker sock. Hopefully they'll be more exciting when you have a pair. I'm looking forward to seeing pictures.

KnitPastis said...

I'll be right over to eat with ya!! Love how this meal sounds!!